The present invention relates to a Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning (HVAC) fan controller device and in particular to a circuit obtaining signals from thermostat or equipment control terminals and providing signals to control the ventilation fan and/or equipment.
Residential and commercial HVAC system power consumption in the United States accounts for 30% of average summer peak-day electricity loads, 14% of total electricity use, and 44% of total natural gas use, as reported by the US Energy Information Agency Residential and Commercial Energy Consumption Surveys from 2003 and 2009.
Known HVAC systems circulate cool or warm air to a conditioned space where the temperature is controlled by a thermostat to maintain thermal comfort conditions at a set point temperature typically within plus or minus 1 degree Fahrenheit (° F.). Fan controls for direct-expansion cooling systems typically turn ON the fan when the cooling apparatus is energized and turn OFF the fan when the cooling apparatus is de-energized. Similarly, fan controls for electric, hydronic, and Heat Pump (HP) heating systems turn ON the fan when the heating apparatus is energized and turn OFF the fan when the heating apparatus is de-energized. Fan controls for gas furnaces typically provide a temperature or fixed fan-on time delay after the furnace has been turned ON to allow time for the heat exchanger to heat up after the burner has been ignited. Fan controls for gas furnaces also provide a temperature or fixed fan-off time delay after the furnace has been turned OFF to recover some of the heating energy stored in the heat exchanger. The temperature-based fan delays either use bimetal switches or temperature sensors to turn on the fan when air leaving the heat exchanger is hot or turn off the fan when air leaving the heat changer is cool.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,684,944 (Brynes et al, 2004) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,695,046 (Brynes et al, 2004) disclose a variable speed fan motor control for forced air heating/cooling systems using an induction-type fan motor controlled by a controller circuit which is operable to continuously vary the speed of the fan motor during a start-up phase and a shut-down phase of the heating and/or cooling cycle. The controller circuit includes temperature sensors which are operable to control start-up and shutdown of the fan motor over continuously variable speed operating cycles in response to sensed temperature of the air being circulated by the fan. Brynes discloses control of the heater fan motor speeds to low, medium, or medium-high used for heating.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,369,916 (Abbey 1983) discloses a 120 VAC heating or cooling system fan override relay control to immediately start the blower to circulate air when the heating or cooling element turns on and continue to operate the override for a fixed timed interval by a time delay relay after the heating or cooling element turns OFF. U.S. Pat. No. 4,369,916 teaches starting the blower fan instantly when the heating element is turned on and not waiting for the heat exchanger to reach operational temperatures before turning on the ventilation fan at a low speed used for heating.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,464,000 (Kloster 2002) discloses is a temperature controlled device for a two-stage furnace: 1) low fan speed for low heat mode, and 2) higher fan speed for high heat mode. Kloster '000 teaches a two-speed fan for two-stage heating system. The higher fan speed is limited to available heater fan speeds and the high speed is only used for high heat mode.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,684,060 (Adams 1987) discloses a furnace fan control using a separate fan relay not integral to the furnace assembly and a timing circuit receiving a “burner on signal” produced when a thermostat, or some other circuit, senses burner operation and closes (which is delayed until 20 to 35 seconds after heat source activation). The '060 patent “burner on signal” is thus energized 20 to 35 seconds after the thermostat W terminal provides a signal to turn on the furnace. The delay in time is based on 15-seconds for an inducer blower to circulate air and purge the combustion chamber of gas, 5 to 10 seconds for the inducer blower to close a pressure switch and energize the hot-surface igniter and open the gas valve to ignite the burner, 5 to 10 seconds for the furnace to prove the burner has ignited. The '060 patent discloses a fixed fan-off time delay of 2 minutes based on 0 to 2 minutes of burner operation, a fan-off time delay of 2 to 4 minutes based on 2 to 4 minutes of burner operation, and a fixed fan-off time delay of 4 minutes for all burner operational times greater than 4 minutes. The fan-off time delay of the '060 patent is based on the principle that all of the available stored heat in the system is present when the heat exchanger reaches operational temperature (the '060 patent assumes this requires 4 minutes of operation), and no additional stored heat accumulated after the heat exchanger reaches operational temperature. For furnace operation less than 4 minutes, Adams '060 wastes energy and causes thermal comfort issues by circulating unwarmed air into the conditioned space before the heat exchanger is hot enough to provide satisfactory operating temperatures. Gas furnaces generally require at least 4 minutes of time for the heat exchanger to warm up and reach an operational temperature unless there is a fault causing short-cycling such as a blocked air filter or cracked heat exchanger. Therefore, the '060 patent '060 effectively only provides a fixed-fan-off time delay of 4 minutes since all furnaces require at least 4 minutes of time to reach operating temperature and store enough heat to support an extended fan-off time delay.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,248,083 (Adams 1993) discloses an adaptive furnace controller using analog temperature sensing to maintain a constant preselected heat exchanger temperature (i.e., 120 Fahrenheit) during operation and operates the fan time delay until a fixed lower heat exchanger temperature (i.e., 90 Fahrenheit) is reached. The adaptive furnace control regulates a controllable valve to adjust burner firing rate, thereby holding heat exchanger operating temperature constant to create constant ON/OFF times based on the previous cycle ON/OFF times of the furnace by regulating circulation blower speed. By increasing blower speeds to shorten “on” times or decreasing blower speeds to increase “on” times, and thereby achieving optimum cycle times.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,141,373 (Peterson et al. 2012) discloses a method of controlling a circulation fan based on a number of different factors such as indoor/outdoor environmental conditions, HVAC schedule period, time of year, or a pseudo random operation. The purpose of Peterson's disclosure is to move air through a controlled space when the HVAC system is not calling for heating or cooling to increase the comfort level of the occupants, or in some cases to increase the indoor air quality by bringing in a fraction of outdoor air.
ICM Controls, Inc. (www.icmcontrols.com) has manufactured an on-delay control and an off-delay control for HVAC circulating fans for more than 25 years. The ICM fan delay control has a single input and a single output and is connected between the fan “G” terminal of a thermostat and an HVAC fan relay used to energize the HVAC fan, and provides manually-selected fixed-time delays extending HVAC fan operation.
The California Energy Commission (CEC) published report number CEC-500-2008-056 in 2008 titled “Energy Performance of Hot Dry Air Conditioning Systems” (CEC '056). Table 23 on page 65 of the CEC '056 report provides laboratory test measurements of sensible Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) and savings from a fixed 5-minute fan-off time delay and an end of compressor cycle (i.e., zero) time delay for compressor cycle operation of 5, 10, and 15 minutes. The report describes a fixed fan-off time delay of five minutes provided decreasing sensible EER values of 8.5, 8, and 7.75 for compressor operational times of 5, 10, and 15 minutes. FIG. 48 on page 66 of the CEC '056 report provides test results of packaged unit latent recovery showing sensible EER versus time for tests with a fixed 10-minute fan-off time delay for compressor operation of 30, 5, and 10 minutes and a 20-minute fan-off time delay for compressor operation of 15 minutes. On page 66 regarding the third test at the 55-minute mark, the report states: “It is evident that the longer compressor on cycle requires a longer ‘tail’ to approach the efficiency achieved by the five minute compressor on cycle within a 10 minute ‘tail.’” Graphically extrapolating the “tail” of the third test based on its slope to achieve a 9.6 sensible EER requires a 30-minute fan-off time delay. This might be theoretically possible under adiabatic laboratory conditions, but impossible to achieve under field conditions in actual buildings due to hot attics, duct losses, infiltration, solar radiation, and outdoor heat conduction through the building shell. The sensible EER is the ratio of total sensible cooling capacity measured in British thermal units (Btu) divided by total AC electric power measured in Watt-hours (Wh). While the CEC '056 report provides information which may hypothetically improve sensible cooling efficiency under adiabatic laboratory conditions, a need remains to optimize sensible cooling performance in actual buildings.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,142,880 (Bellis, 1992) discloses a solid state control circuit for use in connection with existing low-voltage thermostat terminals of a split-system or packaged HVAC system having a refrigerant system compressor and condenser with outdoor fan and an evaporator and gas-fired furnace or electrical heating elements with indoor blower fan. The '880 patent relates generally to systems for increasing the efficiency of Air Conditioning (AC) units by continuing the blower run time for a fixed time period after the compressor is turned OFF. Specifically, the '880 patent discloses an AC control unit comprising a low voltage room thermostat fan terminal, a low voltage compressor relay terminal, a timing circuit means, a sensitive gate triac, and a power triac. The '880 patent also discloses a method for controlling the on-off time of an indoor fan that is controlled by and associated with an indoor thermostat for a room AC system. The apparatus of the '880 patent is not programmable or adaptable. The delay is related to the supply voltage, which varies from system to system. Bellis provides constant current to the triac gates on the order of 6 milliamps. The total current draw is even higher than that when all components are included. Many systems have do not accommodate this much current draw through control relays without causing a humming noise which irritates the user. The Bellis design momentarily de-energizes the relay when switch from thermostat driven fan to his delay, which may cause relay chatter and excessive wear. Bellis does not provide for an override function if the unit fails.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,582,233 (Noto 1996) discloses a device used to extend the fan run time using a family of fixed time delays, and also periodically activates the fan during times the system is not calling for heating or cooling. The '233 patent requires the device to have access to the 24 VAC signals from the AC transformer. This requirement precludes the device from operating using connections limited to the thermostat since most thermostats do not have both the hot and neutral legs of the transformer. Household wiring only provides the hot (red) signal to the transformer.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,842,044 (Flanders et al., 1989) provides a heating and cooling control system that works by energizing a fan or other fluid circulating device to circulate fluid and effect thermal transfer of energy from the fluid to the spaces being heated and by de-energizing the circulating means at a selected time interval after de-energization of the heating and control system. The '044 patent also claims a heating control system comprising a switching means to effect energization of the fluid circulating means, a switching control means that is energizable in response to operation of the control circuit, and an additional circuit means that energizes the switching control means a selected time interval after de-energization of the heating system. The '044 patent is intended to increase the time the fan is turned on after a heating cycle to improve energy efficiency. The device draws power continuously from the gas solenoid through a 680 ohm resistor, and this method has proven to be problematic in practice. Too much current drawn in this way, can cause a humming noise in the gas valve and false operation. The '044 patent also enables the fan relay to activate the blower as soon as the gas valve is activated. This results in cool air being circulated throughout the home since the plenum is not sufficiently warm. Normal heat operation retards the blower until the temperature in the plenum reaches a preset operating temperature. The '044 patent also requires the addition of a relay circuit. This relay must be active the entire time the fan is to be OFF, creating a significant current draw even when the system is in not calling for heating or cooling. The '044 patent also describes fixed delays. It has no way to adapt the fan delay times either by user input or by the compressor run time. The delays provided by the '044 patent are also subject to the variations of the components selected. Additionally, although Flanders touches on the subject of how his invention works when the fan switch on the thermostat is moved from the AUTO position to the ON position, as described, there is no way for the fan to come on when the occupant requests.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,136,730 (Kinsey 1979) teaches of a device that intervenes with the controls coming from a thermostat and going to the heating/cooling system. The '703 patent discloses a fixed upper limit to the time that the compressor or heating source can be activated and then his invention adds additional time to the blower fan. This activity can increase the efficiency of an air conditioner system by allowing a certain amount of water to condense on the evaporator coil and then re-evaporating this water to cool the home. The amount of water collected varies based on the humidity of the ambient air. Having a fixed compressor run time with a fixed blower time can create a less efficient system than the current invention. In many environments, limiting the compressor run time and counting on evaporative cooling to reduce the home's temperature increases the time required to cool the home. In many cases, the desired set point may never be achieved.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,240,851 (Walsh 2007) discloses about a furnace fan timer. The device disclosed in the '851 patent is strictly a timer with a user programmable interval and duration. The device runs continuously in a never ending loop counting down minutes before operating the fan and then counting the minutes to keep the fan activated. The device disclosed in '851 patent is not compatible with air conditioner systems. Most thermostats connect the fan switch to the air conditioner compressor switch when operating in the automatic fan mode. In systems with air conditioners, the device disclosed in '851 patent activates the air conditioner compressor when it turns on the fan. This requires users to turn OFF the circuit breakers for their air conditioner systems when using his device. The device disclosed in '851 patent has two interchangeable wire connections.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,394,920, (Kronmiller 1946), discloses an HVAC thermostat device to control room temperatures using a pair of thermally responsive bimetallic strips mounted within a circular-shaped housing to control space cooling or heating equipment using low voltage signals.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,140,551, (de Pauw 2006) discloses a similar HVAC thermostat device with a simplified user interface and circular-shaped housing to control space cooling or heating equipment using low voltage signals.
European Patent EP0830649 B1 and U.S. PCT/US1996/009118 (Shah 2002) disclose an adaptive method for a setback thermostat using the intersection of the space temperature with a sloped recovery temperature line which approximates the change in temperature as a function of time during recovery of the temperature controlled space from a setback temperature, to determine the time at which recovery to the occupancy temperature should begin. The '118 patent application computes and updates the slope of the temperature recovery line based on the time between actually achieving the desired next set point temperature and the next set point time associated with the next set point. If the space heating or cooling load changes, recovery starts at a time more compatible with the current heating or cooling load in order to complete recovery at or near the desired time.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,172,555 (Levine 1979) discloses a thermostat controller system for a building heating and/or cooling system including a stored program of desired temperatures which are to be attained within the building at predetermined times within a repetitive time cycle. The '555 patent discloses a method to determine the optimum time to turn on the heating and/or cooling system to meet the next programmed temperature by turning the system on and then off for a short period of time and the temperature change which results in the building as a result of the transient operation is measured. The time at which the furnace must be switched on to attain the next programmed temperature is then determined as a function of the rate of temperature change as determined by the transient switching and the difference between the instantaneous and the future programmed temperature.
Based on the prior art a need remains to practically optimize sensible cooling and heating performance in actual buildings.